‘Arsenio’ Makes Executive Producer Change

Four weeks into its run, Arsenio Hall‘s syndicated late-night show is making a behind-the scenes change. I’ve learned that Neal Kendall is stepping down as an executive producer of the CBS TV Distribution-produced talker. According to a source close to the production, his last day was today. I hear in the interim, Kendall will be replaced on by CTD SVP Programming and Development Eric Pankowski, who has been overseeing The Arsenio Hall Show since he joined the company in May. He will work alongside executive producers Hall and his manager, Octagon’s John Ferriter. After a blazing-hot start, Arsenio has retreated in the ratings but has been relatively stable and still does OK in the demos. (though a commenter noted that the show hit a 18-49 low in the metered markets on Thursday, the day before the EP exit.) According to sources, the executive producer switch was done as a proactive move to shore up the show’s long-term prospects with the right fit in the key position. Kendall was tapped as EP of Arsenio in February after a 10-year stint on Tavis Smiley.

Related: Arsenio Hall Gets Good Sampling In Return To Late-Night